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Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Johnnie's New York Pizzeria - Irvine

(Not to be confused with Johnny's New York Pizza in Laguna Beach, that I had to report to the health department for being so gross.)

Johnnie’s New York Pizzeria has recently opened in the Orchard Hills Village Shopping Center in Irvine. Johnnie’s is a casual, full service dine-in restaurant that also offers take out. Delivery I’m told will be coming soon. In addition to pizza, Johnnie’s offers salads, sandwiches, pastas and more.

I recently went down to Johnnie’s to try their pizza. I was surprised at how nice it looked at first. I was expecting a pizza joint with counter service. Instead I was greeted at the door by a hostess. I told her that I wanted to get some pizza to go so she directed me to the take out counter.

I looked over the menu and decided that I was in the mood for a simple pepperoni pizza. I noticed that you could create your own large one topping pizza for $15.95 or you could order a large “Classic Pepperoni Pizza” for $16.95. I asked the cashier what the difference was between the two pizzas. “Nothing,” she said. “So they are the exact same pizza, but if I say the word ‘classic’ then I pay $1.00 more?” I asked. She went back into the kitchen to ask. She came back and said “The chef said he tries to put more pepperoni on the classic pepperoni pizza.” He tries? I told her that I liked a lot of pepperoni, so I would go ahead and try the classic pepperoni pizza. I also ordered a medium jalapeno pizza for the wife ($12.10).

I was told that my order would be ready in 10-15 and indeed it was. I quickly drove home and opened up the boxes to find two steaming hot, glistening pies. They looked fantastic. I took a slice and eagerly took a bite. The crust was crunchy on the outside and chewy in the middle. The cheese was stringy and the pepperoni was deliciously salty. This was a fantastic pizza. However, I would have still liked more pepperoni on the pizza.

The pizza at Johnnie’s is very good. I ate slice after slice until I was stuffed. I thought the price for a large one topping pizza was a little high, but I’ll definitely eat here again, especially if I have a coupon. I was also disappointed that they did not offer fresh garlic or cilantro as toppings. If you combine these two toppings with pepperoni on a New York stlye pizza, you'll be in heaven. Hopefully they will add these toppings in the future.

Johnnie’s is a chain that was started in Los Angeles and is franchised by Kahala Corp, the same company that franchises Coldstone Creamery, Taco Time, Blimpie, Wafflo, Cereality, Surf City Squeeze and more. Johnnie’s has apparently been voted one of the best pizzas in LA. This Irvine location is the first OC location to open, but I am told there will be many more.

From the time you are seated, it should not take 15 minutes for your server to introduce himself and offer drinks. We almost left, but we decided against it. I wished we had left. The spaghetti sauce had not cooked long enough. The garlic bread they served prior to the meal was a cold afterthought. After being served our meals, the waiter did not offer drink refills for close to 30 minutes. And this restaurant was only half-filled with customers.